EP2174842B1 - Air bag assembly - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an airbag arrangement for a motor vehicle with an airbag accommodated by an enclosure, which serves to protect occupants of a motor vehicle from possible impact injuries in the event of a crash.

In such an airbag arrangement, the airbag is a cushion which can be inflated in the event of a crash, which is folded together in the non-activated state of the airbag arrangements and is surrounded by the enclosure, which in turn is e.g. a perforation or predetermined breaking point or tear point (for example in the form of a tear seam) along which it can easily break or tear during the activation of the airbag arrangement as a result of the expanding airbag.

In particular side and head airbags are usually arranged between the interior lining of the passenger compartment and the body. When activating such an airbag, the deploying airbag emerges from the inner lining of the passenger compartment along a defined area in order to be able to perform the desired protective function. This defined area may, for example, be a joint at which two adjacent interior trim parts of the passenger compartment adjoin one another, so that the unfolding airbag can emerge there from the interior trim.

Since such an airbag can usually be indirectly fixed on its surrounding casing on the vehicle body, is located the airbag is not in close proximity to the interior trim, so there is a need to ensure that the deployed in the event of a crash airbag actually gets on the desired path in the passenger compartment.

The generic US Pat. No. 6,340,171 B1 shows an airbag assembly with an envelope surrounded by an airbag. In this enclosure below the airbag, an elongated shaped body is further added, wherein airbag and moldings are located in different chambers of the enclosure. The molded body serves to catch the head of an occupant in an accident in which the airbag is not inflated.

The DE 197 12 039 A1 also shows an airbag assembly with an airbag surrounded by a sheath. Above this airbag extends parallel to this within the enclosure, a wire, by means of which the airbag is connected via fitting parts with the vehicle.

The invention is therefore based on the object of specifying an airbag arrangement which allows optimized positioning of its envelope and thus of its airbag, so that it can unfold unhindered in the event of a crash.

This object is achieved with an airbag arrangement, which has the features of claim 1.

According to the invention, at least one receptacle is formed in the envelope of the airbag arrangement, in particular on the side which lies in the installed state of the airbag arrangement on a vehicle body, in which a positioning body which can be handled independently of the vehicle body for positioning the airbag arrangement relative to Vehicle body is arranged or can be arranged.

Thus, according to the invention, the envelope is not only provided as a shell for the folded airbag, but at the same time as a holder or receptacle for a positioning body. Advantageously, therefore, an already existing component of the airbag arrangement is used for positioning purposes with the enclosure. Additional components or material sections for receiving or holding the positioning body are not required according to the invention.

From the prior art it is known to provide such positioning body directly to the body, thereby bringing the airbag or its envelope in an optimal position for the deployment of the airbag. However, such attachment of positioning bodies to the bodywork is often undesirable because of the associated higher production costs, especially since such an approach is relatively inflexible. It is particularly advantageous according to the invention that the positioning body can be made part of the airbag assembly and does not have to form part of the vehicle body.

According to the invention, therefore, a possibility is created which makes it possible to attach a separate positioning body directly to the enclosure in order to be able to bring the airbag in a very targeted manner into the respectively desired installation position. Such a positioning body, which can serve as a spacer for spacing the enclosure from the vehicle body and thus as a deployment aid for the airbag, in at least one receptacle formed by the enclosure itself directly on the outside of the enclosure and not to be arranged on the body, proves to be in particular to the effect that thereby the positioning of the airbag assembly can be optimized with respect to each airbag type installed in the vehicle. If, for example, in the context of a facelift of a motor vehicle, a different airbag arrangement is to be installed than before, it is therefore not necessary to place any positioning body located on the vehicle body differently or in its shape to train differently; Rather, the fact that the positioning body is arranged in a receptacle formed by the enclosure itself and can be handled independently of the vehicle body, the position of the positioning body on the enclosure are already adapted by the air bag assembly producing suppliers to the changed situation, so no costly modifications the driving tool body itself must be made.

The at least one receptacle is bounded or defined by an opening formed in the material of the enclosure. The positioning body can thus be inserted through the opening into the receptacle, in order subsequently to be at least partially received by the receptacle. In a simple case, for example, the opening may be a simple hole or a single slot or notch in the enclosure.

The airbag assembly according to the invention also proves to be advantageous by the fact that the positioning body is part of the airbag assembly and thus does not have to be installed as an independent component during the final assembly of the motor, which proves to be particularly advantageous in terms of production economy.

Advantageous embodiments of the invention will become apparent from the dependent claims, the description and the drawings.

It is preferably provided that the receptacle is formed in a region of the envelope, which rests with its inner side directly on the folded airbag.

Preferably, the receptacle is adapted to receive only a part of the positioning body.

The positioning body can be threaded through the sheath or interwoven with the sheath according to another embodiment.

In order to be able to connect the positioning body to the enclosure in a particularly reliable manner, it is provided according to a further preferred embodiment that the at least one receptacle of the enclosure is formed by a web formed from the material of the enclosure, which is preferably substantially parallel in material the envelope formed slots or cuts is limited.

In order to connect the positioning body with the airbag, the positioning body is inserted in this embodiment in one of the two slots in the interior of the enclosure and led out of the other of the two slots again from the interior of the enclosure. In other words, the positioning body is thus guided from outside the sheath behind the tab, so that the positioning body in the region of the tab comes into contact with the airbag located inside the sheath. The positioning body is in this case, so to speak, threaded through the sheath or interwoven with the sheath.

According to a further embodiment, it proves to be advantageous if the envelope has a multiplicity of tabs bounded in each case by two slots or cuts, wherein according to one embodiment a single positioning body can extend through a plurality of the receptacles formed in this way. The positioning body extends along the sheath alternately on the outside of the enclosure and facing the interior of the enclosure Side of the tabs, so that the positioning body is so to speak interwoven with the envelope. As a result, the positioning body is not only reliably secured to the enclosure. Rather, this embodiment allows one and the same positioning body can be performed over substantially the entire length of the enclosure, so as to space the envelope or the airbag received thereof over the entire length of the vehicle body. At the same time thereby a pendulum movement of the airbag package can be avoided with respect to the vehicle body.

In order to further reduce any oscillating movement of the airbag package, the envelope can also be equipped on the side facing away from the vehicle body with corresponding receptacles for receiving positioning bodies. In this way it can be prevented that the airbag packet abutted due to unwanted oscillations to the headliner or other interior trim components, which can otherwise lead to unwanted noise.

According to a further embodiment, the positioning body may be a body made of an elastic, preferably foamed plastic material (for example polyethylene). The preparation of the positioning body of a resilient plastic material may prove to be advantageous in that thereby the positioning body can be compressed, whereby z. B. the positioning body in the at least one receptacle of the enclosure can be easily inserted.

Such a compression of the positioning body may be required, for example, if it is to be fixed by frictional engagement in the at least one receptacle, including its dimensions substantially to match the shape and size of the recording. However, since in this case the positioning body can not or only poorly in the uncompressed state can be inserted into the receptacle, it proves advantageous to manufacture this from an elastic, preferably foamed plastic material such as polyethylene (PE) to him for the insertion in to be able to compress the recording.

The production of the positioning of a plastic material such as polyethylene, which is preferably foamed to produce the positioning body, also proves to be advantageous in that thereby over a manufactured example of metal positioning body cost savings of about 50% and a weight saving of up to about 90% can be achieved.

According to a further embodiment, the positioning body may be made of an at least substantially inelastic and / or stiff material, since it has been recognized that the elasticity of the airbag received by the sheath is sufficient to hold the positioning body captive in the respective receptacle. In this embodiment, the positioning body can be, for example, a round solid or hollow profile of metal or plastic, but any solid or hollow body can be used as a positioning body. For example, one or more tube or tube sections with different diameters can be used as the positioning body to individually space the airbag package at individual locations from the vehicle body by arranging tube or tube sections of different diameters in the respective receptacles depending on the size of the desired spacing. In particular, very inexpensive, commonly available plastic pipes or hoses are used, which can be easily cut to the required length according to the specific application.

According to a further preferred embodiment, the airbag may be an airbag suitable for protecting the head of a vehicle occupant, which in the folded state has a substantially elongate shape. The airbag and the associated envelope have a shape such that they are on the vehicle roof z. B. between an A-pillar and a C-pillar of a vehicle body and / or optionally over a B-pillar can extend away, wherein the airbag, including wrapping in the event that the vehicle body on other columns (eg D or E-pillar) should be able to extend there. Since, in the event of a crash, there is often the risk that, for example, the C-pillar, including the inner lining lining the C-pillar, will be pushed upwards and thereby hinder the undisturbed unfolding of the airbag, it is provided in this embodiment that the positioning body is at least in one Is located in the region of the enclosure, which is in the assembled state at one of said columns to space the envelope of the body. The positioning body may extend over substantially the entire length of the envelope, so that it is optimally positioned over its entire length. Alternatively, however, it may also be provided that positioning bodies are placed in corresponding receptacles in the enclosure only in the region of the respective columns. In this way, the airbag can be positioned close to the inner lining of the passenger compartment, in particular in the region of said columns, so that the deployment of the airbag is not obstructed as a result of upwardly moving A, federal or C columns (or further columns).

Fig. 1

eine perspektivische Darstellung einer erfindungsgemäßen Luftsackanordnung zeigt;

Fig. 2

zwei Schnittdarstellungen durch die Luftsackanordnung der Fig. 1 zeigt;

Fig. 3

eine Ansicht der Umhüllung der erfindungsgemäßen Luftsackanordnung zeigt; und

Fig. 4

eine Einbausituation der erfindungsgemäßen Luftsackanordnung im Bereich der B-Säule einer Fahrzeugkarosserie zeigt.

In the following, the invention will be described purely by way of example with reference to an exemplary embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1

a perspective view of an airbag assembly according to the invention;

Fig. 2

two sectional views through the airbag assembly of Fig. 1 shows;

Fig. 3

shows a view of the envelope of the airbag assembly according to the invention; and

Fig. 4

shows an installation situation of the airbag arrangement according to the invention in the region of the B-pillar of a vehicle body.

The Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of an airbag assembly according to the invention, which shows the airbag assembly viewed from a vehicle body, to which it can be attached by means of fastening tabs 26.

The airbag assembly includes a wrapper 12 made of a nonwoven or web material and an airbag 10 received by the wrapper 12 in a collapsed condition. Both the airbag 10 and the envelope 12 have in the embodiment shown here an elongated shape, for example, to protect the head of a vehicle occupant on the vehicle roof continuously or partially between an A-pillar and a C-pillar (or possibly to to an E pillar) of a vehicle body and, if applicable, to extend beyond all the columns in between ( Fig. 4 ). The envelope 12 is preferably made of a nonwoven material which has been folded together and sewn together along a closing seam 24, so that in this way a tubular or tubular interior space 28 for the folded airbag 10 is created by the envelope 12.

At the opposite side of the closing seam 24, the wrapping 12 consisting of a nonwoven material has a perforation 22, whereby a predetermined breaking point or tear point is created, along which the wrapping 12 can break or tear in the event of a crash due to an expansion of the airbag 10. In the case that the sheath 12 should be made of a fabric material, the sheath can also be sewn together from two separate, superimposed and along the closing seam 24 and one of these closing seam 24 opposite tear seam 22 along which the sheath 12 due to an expansion of the airbag 10 can tear in the event of a crash.

How best of all Fig. 3 can be removed, the sheath 12 on the side that comes to lie in the installed state of the airbag assembly to a vehicle body, a plurality of slots 20 which are substantially parallel to each other and preferably evenly spaced in the longitudinal direction of the sheath 12 to each other. Thus, in each case one tab 18 is formed in the fleece or fabric material of the sheath 12 by two successive slots 20 in order to serve as a holder or receptacle for a positioning body 14. The tab 18 may also be referred to as a pocket or web and forms a receptacle in the sense of the invention for a part of the positioning body 14.

It is not mandatory that two contiguous slots 20 form a receptacle. A receptacle can also be formed by two slots 20 between which there are one or more further slots 20, i. for holding the positioning body 14 on the sheath 12, one or more slots 20 can to some extent be "skipped".

In the illustrated embodiment, the positioning body 14 is an elongate foam rod or cord made of foamed polyethylene, for example. To connect the positioning body 14 with the sheath 12, the positioning body 14 is inserted through one of the slots 20 inside the enclosure 12 and led out of one of the next slots 20 again out of the interior of the enclosure 12, so that the positioning body 14 behind the through these two slots 20 limited lug 18 extends along and thereby comes into contact with the airbag 10, as best in section AA Fig. 2 you can see.

In the event that the positioning body 14 is to extend over a greater length of the airbag 10, as is the case in the illustrated embodiment, the positioning body 14 can in the manner described above by a plurality of each formed by two slots 20 tabs 18th be threaded through, so that the positioning body 14 viewed in the longitudinal direction of the sheath 12 alternately on the outside of the envelope 12 (s., Section BB of Fig. 2 ) and on the inside of the envelope 12 (see section AA of the Fig. 2 ), so that the positioning body 14 is to some extent interwoven with the sheath 12.

In order for the positioning body 14 to be securely held by the flaps 18 after being interwoven with the enclosure 12 in the manner previously described, the positioning body 14 may have dimensions slightly exceeding those of the seats defined by the flaps 18. In order nevertheless to be able to introduce the positioning body 14 into the receptacles formed by the tabs 18, the positioning body 14 can be made in the manner described above from a resilient plastic material such as foamed polyethylene, so that it compresses into the tabs 18 for the threading operation can be. Also, the folded airbag 10 has a certain flexibility, which facilitates the threading of the positioning body 14.

The folded airbag 10 has due to its folding a certain inherent elasticity and is sufficiently tightly surrounded by the sheath 12, so that the positioning body 14 in the connected, held by the tabs 18 state impresses the material packet formed by the folded airbag 10, as it Fig. 2 can be removed. As a result, the folded airbag 10 exerts due to its inherent elasticity a certain reaction force on the positioning body 14, so that it is frictionally held and thus captive in the tabs 18. Thus, due to the reaction force exerted by the folded airbag 10 on the positioning body 14, it is not necessarily required to form the positioning body 14 itself from an elastic material; Rather, the positioning body 14 may be made of a rigid material such as a rigid pipe section, since it is pressed by the folded air bag 10 against the inside of the tabs 18 and thus held captive.

With the help of the positioning body 14, it is thus possible to selectively position the enclosure 12 at potentially critical locations with respect to a vehicle body such that the deployment of the airbag 10 in the event of a crash does not only not hinder, but undisturbed deployment of the airbag 10 in the intended manner Rather, it is actively supported, as described in the following Fig. 4 illustrated installation situation of the airbag assembly according to the invention in the region of the B-pillar 30 is explained.

Again Fig. 4 can be removed, the airbag 12 extends in the longitudinal direction along a lateral edge region of the vehicle roof 32, which merges into the B-pillar 30 and the A and C pillars of the vehicle, not shown here. The airbag arrangement according to the invention is fastened to the vehicle body by means of a plurality of fastening straps 26 and would come into contact directly with the B-pillar 30 without the arrangement of the positioning body 14, so that it would not be reliably ensured that the airbag unfolding as a result of the activation of the gas generator 34 10 passes in the intended manner through the gap 36, at which the vehicle head 38 and the B-pillar trim 40 abut each other, inside the passenger compartment. Rather, there would be a risk that the airbag 10 behind the panel 40, ie between the B-pillar 30 and the panel 40, spreads.

According to the invention, therefore, the sheath 12 is provided on the side facing the vehicle body or the B-pillar 30 in the manner according to the invention with the positioning body 14, which the airbag package 10, 12 spaced from the B-pillar 30 and in Immediate proximity to the gap 36 between the headliner 38 and the B-pillar trim 40 urges, thereby reliably ensuring is that the unfolding air bag 10 passes in the desired manner through the gap 36 into the interior of the passenger compartment to meet its intended function of its protective function.

The invention thus allows in an extremely simple and cost-effective manner, an alignment of the airbag assembly in the vehicle such that a direction of propagation of the airbag can be specified specifically and clearly in relation to the installation situation. In particular, the airbag assembly is material-saving, since the recordings for the / the positioning body will be created by the enclosure of the airbag itself. In addition, the airbag assembly according to the invention is very flexible adaptable to the respective installation situation, since the material and the shape of the positioning body including its length can be chosen approximately arbitrarily. The flexibility of the airbag assembly is further enhanced by the fact that the slits forming the receptacles can be provided at almost any point of the enclosure and in widely varying lengths for accommodating differently sized positioning bodies.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

10

air bag

12

wrapping

14

positioning body

16

admission

18

Bag, flap, bridge

20

slot

22

Perforation or tear seam

24

closing seam

26

mounting tab

28

Interior of 12th

30

B-pillar

32

vehicle roof

34

inflator

36

gap

38

headlining

40

B-pillar trim

Claims (12)

1. Airbag arrangement for a motor vehicle, comprising an inflatable airbag (10) and a cover (12) which encloses the airbag (10) in the folded state, wherein there is formed in the cover (12), in particular on the side which comes to lie against a vehicle body in the installed state of the airbag arrangement, at least one holder (16) in which there is arranged or can be arranged a positioning body (14) for positioning the airbag arrangement relative to the vehicle body, which positioning body can be manipulated independently of the vehicle body, characterised in that the at least one holder (16) is defined or delimited by at least one opening (20) which is formed in the cover (12) and which is produced in particular without taking material away from the cover (12).
2. Airbag arrangement according to claim 1, characterised in that the holder (16) is formed in a region of the cover (12) which bears with its inner side directly against the folded airbag (10).
3. Airbag arrangement according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the holder (16) is designed to hold only a portion of the positioning body (14).
4. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the at least one holder (16) is configured as a pocket, strap or web (18).
5. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the at least one holder (16) is formed by a material portion of the cover (12) which is delimited by two openings (20) formed as slits or incisions in the material of the cover (12).
6. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the cover (12) has a plurality of holders (16) which are delimited by in each case two openings (20), wherein in particular a single positioning body (14) extends through a plurality of the holders (16) thus formed, preferably through every second holder (16).
7. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the positioning body (14) is threaded through the cover (12) or is interwoven with the cover (12).
8. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the positioning body (14) has an elongate shape.
9. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the positioning body (14) is a solid or hollow body made from an at least substantially non-elastic and/or stiff material.
10. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that the positioning body (14) is a body made from an elastic material, preferably foamed plastic material.
11. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the airbag (10) is an airbag (10) which has a shape that is elongate in the folded state and which is suitable for protecting the head of a vehicle occupant.
12. Airbag arrangement according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the airbag (10) in the folded state has a shape such that it is suitable for extending along the vehicle roof lining between a first column and a second column of a vehicle body and optionally via an intermediate column, wherein the positioning body (14) is arranged at least in a region of the cover (12) which comes to lie on one of the columns, so as to distance the cover (12) from the body.

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